Our Top 10 Easy Dinner Ideas To Make This Fall

When the season turns to fall, the urge strikes to make dinners that offer ease and comfort. Here are our top 10 dinner ideas to give you all of the fall vibes you love, without tons of time or prep.

Oct 15, 2024 - 16:00

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Our Top 10 Easy Dinner Ideas To Make This Fall

casserole — Simply Recipes / Marta Rivera Diaz

When does fall start? I always forget, because I'm too immersed in doing things like cooking down the giant bag of apples I just bought, or dreaming of the hearty chili I'll get simmering on the stove. Oh, and adjusting to school starting up again. That one's a biggie.

Dates be darned: maybe fall starts when it feels like fall. Seems there's a roster of ingredients and flavors that everyone craves when leaves start to turn. How do you make those a reality in between raking the yard and dashing home from various practices after school or after work?

Never fear. We pulled together the best fall dinners for you to make on nights when you're in a bit of a scurry. They deliver all the fall cozies you yearn for.

1. Easy Chicken Enchilada Casserole

Slice of Easy Chicken Enchilada Casserole on a Plate Topped with a Dollop of Sour Cream, Some Onions, and Cilantro, and in the Background, a Bowl of Side Salad and Smaller Bowls with More Toppings — Simply Recipes / Marta Rivera Diaz

Enchiladas are always my order when we go to our local Mexican spot. Why? I love them, but I'm too lazy to make them. But this easy-to-assemble cheesy casserole is another story. You can use canned enchilada sauce or make your own; likewise, you can cook the chicken yourself or go with a rotisserie bird.

2. Paccheri With Quick Sausage Ragu

Pot of Paccheri With Quick Sausage Ragu With a Spoon, and in the Surroundings, a Glass, a Block of Parmesan, a Stack of Plates, and Basil Leaves — Simply Recipes / Ciara Kehoe

Paccheri are like giant ridged ziti, ideal for holding chunky sauces like this sausage ragu. If you can't find paccheri, rigatoni is a fine substitute. Or even penne! Whichever pasta you opt for, this superb dinner is on the table in 30 minutes.

3. Easy Meatloaf

Easy Meatloaf With Some of It Cut Into Slices, All on a Platter, and Next to It, a Bowl of Broccoli — Simply Recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek

This meatloaf isn't just the easiest. It's the best. I based it on the one my mom made for years, but streamlined the mixing step by using a stand mixer. It'll be your go-to from now on, I promise. Mom never lets anyone down.

4. Buffalo Chicken Tacos

Plate With a Serving of Buffalo Chicken Tacos Topped With Blue Cheese Crumbles and Green Onion Slices and Next to Two Lime Slices. In the Surroundings, a Platter With More Tacos, Lime Slices on the Counter, a Bowl of Coleslaw, and a Glass — Simply Recipes / Ciara Kehoe

A few simple elements—shredded chicken, Buffalo sauce, blue cheese crumbles—make this mashup of tacos and hot wings a hit. It's ready in 20 minutes and is splendid with a bagged coleslaw kit.

5. Butternut Squash Risotto

A ceramic bowl with a serving of butternut squash risotto — Elise Bauer

"Oh, but risotto is so hard," you may think. It's not! It's just rice and a few other ingredients cooked on the stove and stirred every now and then. If you have an antsy young helper, assign them the stirring task to keep them busy. A bag of refrigerated cubed butternut squash can shave down prep time (you'll likely need to halve the cubes to keep the cook time on track)

6. Pumpkin Chili

Pumpkin Chili With Chunks of Pumpkin — Aaron Hutcherson

Yes, it's pumpkin season. Why not bring it to the dinner table in addition to your jack-o-lantern? This chili embraces canned beans and ground meat for a faster cooking time (the recipe calls for pork, but beef or turkey work just as well). If cutting up a pumpkin seems a drag, use thawed frozen butternut squash instead.

7. Steamed Salmon With Spicy Maple Sauce

The sweet and enticing flavors of maple glaze may convert those who aren't salmon fans. If you don't have a steamer like what the recipe calls for, you can follow the alternate directions for roasting in the oven.

8. Slow Cooker Pulled Pork With Five Spice

Slow Cooker Chinese Pulled Pork — Elise Bauer

Versatility is what this recipe is all about. Serve it on buns or over rice. Slip it in fusion tacos. Serve it with a simple cucumber salad and call it a night.

9. Roasted Sweet Potato Salad

Plate of Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with a Fork, Surrounded by a Bowl with More Salad, Glasses, a Small Bowl with Salt, a Cutting Board with a Lime Half, and a Kitchen Towel — Simply Recipes / Ciara Kehoe

This colorful stunner is equally delicious warm or at room temp, fresh or made ahead. Leftovers are ace for lunch. It's filling enough to stand on its own, but you can easily grill some chicken breasts to round it out.

10. Chicken Pot Pie Soup

Bowl of chicken pot pie soup topped with toasted oyster crackers on a plate with a spoon and next to it, a pot with more chicken pot pie soup, a small bowl with more toasted oyster crackers, and mustard colored table napkin — Simply Recipes / Photo by Fred Hardy / Food Styling by Emily Nabors Hall / Prop Styling by Julia Bayliss

Of course chicken pot pie is great. But you know what's just as great? A creamy, cozy soup that requires no fumbling with pastry or long bake time. Rotisserie chicken and a short simmer get the job done. Fast-baked seasoned oyster crackers make an optional topping, but a batch of canned biscuits or even saltines to serve alongside would work, too.